The Deputy of the state Duma from «United Russia», the former chief sanitary doctor Gennady Onishchenko commented on the who report on HIV in Europe. The data was published on the eve of world day against AIDS (December 1). According to statistics, in 2017, Russia leads in the number of new cases of infection with the human immunodeficiency virus. Onishchenko said that the figures in the report are not objective enough: the fact that Russia is the most extensive in Europe test the population for infection, while in other countries, many cases remain undiagnosed.

Onishchenko advised the experts of the European Bureau of the who to be more objective in their assessments. «According to statistics, in 2017 the growth of new cases of HIV in Europe amounted to almost 160 thousand. From them 130 thousand have in the post-Soviet space, and 104 thousands of infected Russians. I do not belittle the seriousness of the problem. However, these figures are related to the fact that we are from the Soviet era have embarked on an extensive screening of volunteers and all risk groups — pregnant women, health workers, drug addicts and so on. Only for the 2017 surveyed more than 40 million people. In Ukraine practically ceased to identify patients, in Belarus they identify only by the testimony, in the rest of Europe this work is also underway on a smaller scale,» explains the MP.

He notes that in the USSR the first case of HIV was officially registered in 1987. «From that moment was more than a million patients. Their number is increasing, although the rate of growth has slowed. Since 2006 our government has made a commitment to treat people with HIV at their own expense. According to 2017, assistance was provided to more than 400 thousands of patients. However, the fight against HIV — a two-way street. Infected must follow the rules of treatment, and in any case not to leave him — so he did eight percent of patients last year. Breaks harm the health, moreover, contribute to the formation of resistance of the infection to the drug, so you have to find new,» says Onishchenko.

In his opinion, such behavior of the patients is often linked to drug addiction: «Though most of the virus enters the body through sexual intercourse, a large proportion of the infected gets virus through non-medical needle. Unfortunately, the ingestion of prohibited substances often pushes a therapy into the background».

Onishchenko also said that effective HIV drug it is necessary to ensure the independence of the country. «Should establish its own production of drugs. Drugs — how money, its never enough, so the funding also needs to be increased. Another problem is the lack of multivalent drugs, which allow to simplify the treatment regimen instead of seven pills is enough to take one. In addition, it is important to go for assistance immediately after the detection of the diagnosis. Today, the treatment is carried out only when the viral load and the immunity level reaches a certain indicators,» explains former chief sanitary doctor of Russia.

However, he urged the society to abandon unreasonable discrimination and stigmatization of the disease. «People with HIV have the right can and should live among us and with the rest go ahead. Today with proper therapy they normally learn, work, give birth to healthy children and live as long as any other person. Restrictions are not social, but purely medical. For example, they will not be able to become donors. HIV is not a death sentence, so no need to despair: the state cares about its citizens,» — concluded Onishchenko.